KHUTAB XI: 15. THE POSITION OF THE ṢAḤĀBAH (8)

15. THE POSITION OF THE ṢAḤĀBAH (8)

According to the Twelver Shi‘ah the vast majority of Muslims turned into apostasy after the death of the Prophet (ﷺ). They disobeyed the Prophet (ﷺ) who had appointed ‘Ali as his mawlā in Ghadīr Khumm. Instead, they appointed Abū Bakr, then ‘Umar, then ‘Uthmān as his successors. Al-Kulaynī reported from Abū Ja‘far that people after the death of the Prophet (ﷺ) became apostates except three people: al-Miqdād ibn al-Aswad, Abū Dharr al-Ghifārī, and Salmān al-Fārisī. In another report it said that they were seventeen, some of them were: ‘Ammār ibn Yāsir, Jābir ibn ‘Abd Allāh, Ḥajar ibn ‘Adī, Hāshim ibn ‘Utbah, and Khuzaymah ibn Thābit. Moreover, there are many Qur’ānic verses mentioning the hypocrites, indicating their existences in great numbers, among them are:

وَإِذَا قِيلَ لَهُمْ تَعَالَوْا إِلَى مَا أَنْزَلَ اللَّهُ وَإِلَى الرَّسُولِ

رَأَيْتَ الْمُنَافِقِينَ يَصُدُّونَ عَنْكَ صُدُودًا (النساء:61(

And when it is said to them: “Come to what Allah has sent

 down and to the Messenger (Muhammad s.a.w.),” you see

the hypocrites turn away from you with aversion (Q. 4:61)

وَإِذْ يَقُولُ الْمُنَافِقُونَ وَالَّذِينَ فِي قُلُوبِهِمْ مَرَضٌ مَا وَعَدَنَا اللَّهُ وَرَسُولُهُ إِلَّا

غُرُورًا. وَإِذْ قَالَتْ طَائِفَةٌ مِنْهُمْ يَا أَهْلَ يَثْرِبَ لَا مُقَامَ لَكُمْ فَارْجِعُوا وَيَسْتَأْذِنُ

فَرِيقٌ مِنْهُمُ النَّبِيَّ يَقُولُونَ إِنَّ بُيُوتَنَا عَوْرَةٌ وَمَا هِيَ بِعَوْرَةٍ إِنْ

يُرِيدُونَ إِلَّا فِرَارًا (الأحزاب:12-13(

And when the hypocrites and those in whose hearts is

a disease (of doubts) said: “Allah and His Messenger

promised us nothing but delusion. And when a party of

them said: “O people of Yathrib (al-Madinah)! There is

no stand (possible) for you (against the enemy attack!) Therefore, go back!” And a band of them ask for

permission of the Prophet saying: “Truly, our homes

lie open (to the enemy).” And they lay not open.

They but wished to flee. (Q. 33:12-13)

أَلَمْ تَرَ إِلَى الَّذِينَ نَافَقُوا يَقُولُونَ لِإِخْوَانِهِمُ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا مِنْ أَهْلِ الْكِتَابِ

لَئِنْ أُخْرِجْتُمْ لَنَخْرُجَنَّ مَعَكُمْ وَلَا نُطِيعُ فِيكُمْ أَحَدًا أَبَدًا وَإِنْ قُوتِلْتُمْ

لَنَنْصُرَنَّكُمْ وَاللَّهُ يَشْهَدُ إِنَّهُمْ لَكَاذِبُونَ (الحشر:11(

Have you (O Muhammad) not observed the hypocrites

who say to their friends among the people of the Scripture

who disbelieve: (By Allah) if you are expelled, we (too)

indeed will go out with you, and we shall never obey any

one against you; and if you are attacked (in fight), we

shall indeed help you.” But Allah is Witness that

they verily are liars (Q. 59:11)

لَئِنْ لَمْ يَنْتَهِ الْمُنَافِقُونَ وَالَّذِينَ فِي قُلُوبِهِمْ مَرَضٌ وَالْمُرْجِفُونَ

فِي الْمَدِينَةِ لَنُغْرِيَنَّكَ بِهِمْ ثُمَّ لَا يُجَاوِرُونَكَ فِيهَا إِلَّا قَلِيلًا. مَلْعُونِينَ

أَيْنَمَا ثُقِفُوا أُخِذُوا وَقُتِّلُوا تَقْتِيلًا (الأحزاب: 60-61(

If the hypocrites, and those in whose hearts is a disease

(evil desire for illegal sex),and those who spread false

news among the people in al-Madinah stop not, We shall certainly let you overpower them, then they will not be

able to stay in it as your neighbours but a little while.

Accursed, they shall be seized wherever found, and

killed with a (terrible) slaughter (Q. 33:60-61)

يَحْذَرُ الْمُنَافِقُونَ أَنْ تُنَزَّلَ عَلَيْهِمْ سُورَةٌ تُنَبِّئُهُمْ بِمَا فِي قُلُوبِهِمْ

قُلِ اسْتَهْزِئُوا إِنَّ اللَّهَ مُخْرِجٌ مَا تَحْذَرُونَ (التوبة:64(

The hypocrites fear lest a surah (chapter of the Qur’ān)

should be revealed about them, showing them what is in

their hearts. Say: “(Go ahead and) mock! But certainly

Allah will bring to light all that you fear.” (Q. 9:64)

          Allah mentioned the existence of hypocrites in Madinah (Q. 9:101), but it was after praising the muhājirīn and the anṣār and those who followed them in their path, and promising them with Paradise, as mentioned earlier (Q. 9:100). He compared the two parties, the believers and the non-believers, the right path and the straying path.

وَمِمَّنْ حَوْلَكُمْ مِنَ الْأَعْرَابِ مُنَافِقُونَ وَمِنْ أَهْلِ الْمَدِينَةِ مَرَدُوا عَلَى النِّفَاقِ

لَا تَعْلَمُهُمْ نَحْنُ نَعْلَمُهُمْ سَنُعَذِّبُهُمْ مَرَّتَيْنِ ثُمَّ يُرَدُّونَ إِلَى عَذَابٍ عَظِيمٍ.

وَآخَرُونَ اعْتَرَفُوا بِذُنُوبِهِمْ خَلَطُوا عَمَلًا صَالِحًا وَآخَرَ سَيِّئًا عَسَى اللَّهُ

أَنْ يَتُوبَ عَلَيْهِمْ إِنَّ اللَّهَ غَفُورٌ رَحِيمٌ (التوبة:101-102(

And among the bedouins around you, some are hypocrites,

and so are some among the people of al-Madinah who persist in hypocrisy; you (O Muhammad) know them not, We know them. We shall punish them twice, and thereafter they shall

be brought back to a great (horrible) torment. And (there

are) others who have acknowledged their sins, they have

mixed a deed that was righteous with another that was

evil. Perhaps Allah will turn them in forgiveness. Surely,

Allah is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful. (Q. 9:101-102)

          Here Allah mentioned that some who were not hypocrites, but sinful, acknowledged their sins and mixed their good deeds with bad ones, and Allah would forgive them. Allah also accepted the repentance of the ṣaḥābah in the time of distress (Tabūk) campaign mentioned in Q. 9:117. Starting from verse 38 till the end of the surah the verses mostly dealt with hypocrites and their characters and behaviors.

          As a matter of fact, Allah revealed to the Prophet (ﷺ) one chapter of the Qur’ān called sūrat al-Munāfiqūn (hypocrites, chapter 63) mentioning their characteristics, and exposing their disgracefulness. It contains eleven verses, starting with the hypocrites’ pretending shahādah, falsely bearing witness and acknowledging that the Prophet (ﷺ) was the Messenger of Allah. Its last three verses were directed to the believers to be mindful of their wealth and children while they were still alive, lest they should neglect their duty towards Allah in spending their wealth and educating their children in Islamic way.

          But Allah also revealed one chapter of the Qur’ān called sūrat al-Mu’minūn (the believers, chapter 23) containing 118 verses—the number of its verses is over ten times its number   in chapter 63 of the hypocrites--where the characteristics of true believers are mentioned, such as performing prayers, avoiding evil vain talk, paying charity, etc. The last verse in it is Allah’s advice to the Prophet and the Muslims to ask His forgiveness. He said:

وَقُلْ رَبِّ اغْفِرْ وَارْحَمْ وَأَنْتَ خَيْرُ الرَّاحِمِينَ (المؤمنون:118(

And say (O Muḥammad): “My Lord! Forgive and have mercy,

for You are the Best of those who show mercy” (Q. 23:118)

          Allah mentioned the hypocrites along with their characteristics to make them distinctive from the real believers among the ṣaḥābah, such as their unwillingness to join the Muslim army in their campaigns. But they were the minority. The majority were true believers, joined the army, spending their wealth for the sake of Islam, and were praised in many verses of the Qur’ān.

          It is unlikely that those praised by Allah in the Qur’ān and given good tidings and promise with Paradise, suddenly turned into apostasy after the death of the Prophet (ﷺ), as his struggle in converting people to Islam in 23 years had ended up with failure. Since no Qur’ānic verse abrogating Allah’s statement in praising the ṣaḥābah in the Qur’ān their good reputation remained till the Judgment day.

         According to the Shi’ah’s view what they mean with apostasy, returning to infidelity, is rejecting the imāmah and the wilāyah of ‘Ali after the Prophet (ﷺ) had announced it at Ghadīr Khumm; it is denying or covering the truth--which was the literal meaning of kufr--, and therefore it does not mean that the majority of the ṣaḥābah have left Islam and became infidels. It is like the Prophet’s ḥadīths when he said:

لَا تَرْجِعُوا بَعْدِي كُفَّارًا يَضْرِبُ بَعْضُكُمْ رِقَابَ بَعْضٍ (رواه البخاري و مسلم(

“Do not turnback after me, becoming infidels, hitting each other’s necks” (Reported by al-Bukhārī and Muslim)

It means: “after me do not kill each other like the infidels do.” It is also like the Prophet’s statement when he said:

سِبَابُ الْمُسْلِمِ فُسُوقٌ وَقِتَالُهُ كُفْرٌ (رواه البخاري و مسلم(

Abusing Muslims is an iniquity, and fighting him is

an infidelity (Reported by al-Bukhārī and Muslim)

          It is unlikely that the Prophet (ﷺ) meant that Ṭalḥah, al-Zubayr, ‘Ā’ishah, Mu‘āwiyah, and ‘Ali had abandoned Islam for their fighting each other. Therefore, the term kufr which literally means “covering” in the ḥadīths means “denying the truth, and not denying the two shahādah, namely, belief in Allah and His Messenger” (الكفر بالحق لا الكفر بالشهادتين).

          The term kufr (كُفْر) literally means: “cover, hide”. Technically, it means disbelieving in Allah and His Messenger: it could be accompanied with denial or not, with doubt or aversion, envy, arrogance, or following some inclination preventing from following the Message of Islam.

          There are two types of kufr (disbelief): major kufr and minor kufr. Major kufr is when a person is no longer considered a Muslim, has left Islam and becomes an apostate. Minor kufr is when a person commits a grave sin, but still remains Muslim, like neglecting the obligatory prayers, and swearing with other than Allah. Major kufr is divided into five categories, as follows:

1. Disbelief with denial (كفر التكذيب), as in the following verse:

وَمَنْ أَظْلَمُ مِمَّنِ افْتَرَى عَلَى اللَّهِ كَذِبًا أَوْ كَذَّبَ بِالْحَقِّ لَمَّا

جَاءَهُ أَلَيْسَ فِي جَهَنَّمَ مَثْوًى لِلْكَافِرِينَ (العنكبوت: 68(

And who does more wrong than he who invents a lie

against Allah or denies the truth (Muhammad and his

doctrine of Islamic Monotheism and this Qur’ān), when

it comes to him? Is there not a dwelling in Hell for the disbelievers (in the Oneness of Allah and in His

Messenger Muhammad?) (Q. 29:68)

2. Disbelief with rejection and pride, (كفر الإباء والاستكبار), such as the disbelief of Iblīs, as mentioned in the following verse:   

وَإِذْ قُلْنَا لِلْمَلَائِكَةِ اسْجُدُوا لِآدَمَ فَسَجَدُوا إِلَّا إِبْلِيسَ

أَبَى وَاسْتَكْبَرَ وَكَانَ مِنَ الْكَافِرِينَ (البقرة: 34(

And (remember) when We said to the angels:

“Prostrate yourselves before Adam.” And they

prostrated except Iblīs (Satan), he refused and

was proud and was one of the disbelievers

(disobedient to Allah) (Q. 2:34)

3. Disbelief in assumption (كفرالظن), as mentioned in the Qur’ān as follows:

وَدَخَلَ جَنَّتَهُ وَهُوَ ظَالِمٌ لِنَفْسِهِ قَالَ مَا أَظُنُّ أَنْ تَبِيدَ هَذِهِ أَبَدًا. وَمَا أَظُنُّ السَّاعَةَ

قَائِمَةً وَلَئِنْ رُدِدْتُ إِلَى رَبِّي لَأَجِدَنَّ خَيْرًا مِنْهَا مُنْقَلَبًا (الكهف:35- 36(

And he went to his garden while in a state (of pride and disbelief), unjust to himself. He said: “I think not that this

will ever perish. And I think not the Hour will ever come,

and if indeed I am brought back to my Lord (on the Day

of Resurrection), I surely shall find better than this

when I return to Him.” (Q. 18:35-36)

4. Disbelief with aversion (كفر الإعراض) , as in this verse:

... وَالَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا عَمَّا أُنْذِرُوا مُعْرِضُونَ (الأحقاف:3(

... But those who disbelieve, turn away from

that whereof they are warned (Q. 46:3)

5. Disbelief with hypocrisy (كفر النفاق), as in the following verse:

ذَلِكَ بِأَنَّهُمْ آمَنُوا ثُمَّ كَفَرُوا فَطُبِعَ عَلَى قُلُوبِهِمْ فَهُمْ لَا يَفْقَهُونَ (المنافقون: 3(

That is because they believed, and then disbelieved; therefore their hearts are sealed, so they understand not. (Q. 63:3)

          Minor kufr is a practical disbelief, where a man remains Muslim, despite committing grave sin, such as denying Allah’s blessings (kufral-ni‘mah), fighting Muslim brothers mentioned in the ḥadīths above, and denying the imāmah of ‘Ali, claimed by the  Shi’is, who claimed themselves to be “true believers.”

 (CIVIC, 16 December, 2016)        

المراجع:

المكتبة الشاملة

تفسير الطبري (ت. 310 هـ(

تفسير القرطبى (ت. 671 هـ (

تفسير ابن كثير (ت. 774 هـ)

http://www.aqaed.com/faq/641/

http://madrasato-mohammed.com/mawsoaat_tawheed_03/ pg_011_0004.htm             

http://www.shiaweb.org/v2/news/article_87.html